Cricket Australia has expressed “serious concern” after revelations of alleged attempts to spot-fix the third Ashes Test, which starts in Perth on Thursday.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is set to investigate after the British newspaper The Sun published undercover video footage purporting to show men offering to rig periods of play for betting purposes at the third Test between England and Australia.
“Before the match, I will tell you this over, this runs and then you have to put all the bets on that over,” a bookmaker says in the video.
The report claimed two men from India asked for 140,000 British pounds (190,000 US dollars) to fix certain markets, including the number of runs scored in an over.
They claimed to be working with an Australian known as the “Silent Man.”
No players were mentioned but the men claimed to have connections with Australian, South African and Pakistani players.
However, Alex Marshall, the head of the ICC’s anti-corruption unit, said Thursday he was confident from his initial assessment that “there is no evidence to suggest the match has been corrupted.”
Cricket Australia said the allegations were of “serious concern,” adding that it took a “zero-tolerance approach” and would fully co-operate with any ICC investigation.
The England and Wales Cricket Board also vowed to work with the ICC anti-corruption unit, adding that “there is no suggestion that any of the England team is involved in any way.”
dpa
